Pubdate: Tue, 16 Nov 2010 Source: Dayton Daily News (OH) Copyright: 2010 Dayton Daily News Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/7JXk4H3l Website: http://www.daytondailynews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/120 Author: Cornelius Frolik, Staff Writer Note: Staff writer Chris Griffth contributed to this report. SPICE: SAFE SUBSTITUTE OR 'DANGEROUS PRODUCT'? Ohio could become the 11th state to outlaw Spice or K2, a synthetic marijuana sold at convenience stores and smoke shops throughout the Miami Valley region. State Rep. Margaret Ruhl, R-Mount Vernon, is one of the lead sponsors of House Bill 544, which would classify Spice and K2 as a Schedule I controlled substance, banning stores from selling it and making it illegal to possess. New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania are considering similar legislation. Ruhl said her bill has bipartisan support, and she is confident it will pass the Legislature next year. She calls Spice a dangerous product that has sickened at least a few high school students from her area and many others. The bill "makes it illegal, the same as marijuana," she said. "It gives you the same high as marijuana but it's more addictive." Spice smokers: It's harmless, stronger Spice users and advocates, meanwhile, contend the substance is a harmless and sensible alternative to marijuana. They admit it can produce a stronger high than marijuana. "I think it was a beautiful thing people invented, and I think if somebody is trying to take it away from us, it's just terrible," said Doug Aytes, 18, who said he smokes Spice every day. Spice was created in 1995 by Dr. John Huffman, a Clemson University organic chemistry professor who was studying the effects of marijuana on the brain. He created a chemical compound that mimics THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, and he published the recipe. People began applying Huffman's compound to dried herbs and spices, which they then sold as incense, called Spice and K2, at smoke shops and other tobacco retailers for $15 or more per gram. Spice and K2 come in all kinds of flavors, including cotton candy and strawberry. When smoked, synthetic marijuana stimulates the same receptors in the brain as organic marijuana and produces a similar high, said Dr. Marcel Casavant, medical director of the Central Ohio Poison Center. But unlike marijuana, Spice and K2 causes some people to become very ill and exhibit symptoms that include high blood pressure, racing heartbeat and nausea. Casavant said the herbs and chemical combination is toxic. "There may be some folks out there using K2 and getting similar experiences to what they would with marijuana, but we're not aware of that," Casavant said. "The folks that come to medical attention are a lot sicker than the folks who come to medical attention for marijuana. "While this may not be illegal, it is clearly not safe. It is a dangerous product that is hurting people." Why use Spice? The American Association of Poison Control Centers received about 2,200 calls about Spice or K2 products this year. It has received about 4,650 calls about marijuana this year, but those calls are often about a combination of drugs, such as ingesting marijuana with cocaine. Justin Fox, 24, of Miamisburg, said he began smoking synthetic marijuana three years ago while he was enlisted in the military because it did not show up in drug tests. He said Spice and other herbal-incense products are less problematic than marijuana because the highs they produce are not so incapacitating. "With the Spice products, it's really light, like smoking a light cigarette - you don't get the coughing and you get a clear mind," Fox said. "People can wake up and still operate." Fox said proponents of legalizing marijuana should instead focus their energy on keeping herbal incense products on the shelves because it is a fair compromise. "It's a legal way to have the same feeling as marijuana," he said. "Tell the guys who are fighting for (legalization of) marijuana, 'Hey, wake up, we have got the solution.'" He said Spice was originally a substitute for marijuana, but it is now an improvement over the plant. He said he would smoke Spice over marijuana even if drug laws changed in this country. Cher Neufer, president of Ohio NRML, a group that advocates reforming America's marijuana laws, said in an e-mail response that her organization supports unbiased government and independent studies of K2 and Spice to determine the effects of the product. She said incense is not meant for human consumption, but her group is opposed to arresting users of Spice or K2, just as it opposes arresting marijuana users. Even so, Neufer said the rising popularity of K2 and Spice products is a consequence of marijuana prohibition. "K2 marketing is aimed at people who would like or would want to smoke cannabis but have to pass a drug test," she said. Staff writer Chris Griffth contributed to this report. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D